The Tire Industry Association (TIA) elected two current board members to its executive committee during its recent mid-year board meeting.
Russ Devens of McCarthy Tire Service Co. Inc., who has chaired TIA’s Training & Education Committee since 2020, was voted in as TIA's new secretary, while TJ Trum of Pomp’s Tire Service Inc. and chair of the association’s government affairs committee, was elected treasurer.
Trum will replace TIA Treasurer Mike Wolfe of Southeastern Wholesale Tire, who is stepping down this fall after 14 years on the board, including seven years as treasurer.
The new TIA officers will officially begin their terms Oct. 30 during the TIA board meeting in Las Vegas prior to the opening of the 2023 Global Tire Expo/SEMA Show.
A TIA board member for the past five years, Devens works as director of safety and risk management at McCarthy Tire.
His election as TIA secretary places him in line to become the association’s president in 2026-2027.
Trum, who is Pomp’s Tire Service's general counsel, joined the board in 2019 and was re-elected to a second, three-year term in 2022.
Along with chairing TIA’s Training and Education Committee, Devens serves the association as a member of its membership, nominating and strategic planning committees, as well as the group's Electric Vehicle Advisory Council. He has more than 30 years of experience in safety, law enforcement, security, insurance and risk management; is a Level-400 Commercial Tire Service TIA instructor; a Part 48 Certified and Part 46 Instructor with the Mine Safety & Health Administration (MSHA); is 30-hour General Industry-Certified with OSHA; and is a Certified Commercial Vehicle Inspector with U.S. DOT.
In addition, he is co-founder of the Tire Industry Safety Leadership Summit.
Commenting on his upcoming role, Devens thanked the TIA board and membership for the opportunity to serve as association secretary. “I look forward to continuing the focus of training and safety within the tire industry,” he said.
Trum also serves on TIA’s strategic planning and training and education committees and leads the association’s support of Trucker’s Against Trafficking. In addition to TIA’s Government Affairs Committee, Trum also chairs the American Commercial Tire Network (ACTN) Human Resources and Safety Committee; is a licensed legal counsel; and is a certified senior professional in human resources by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM-SCP).
“I appreciate and am humbled by those in the industry that have entrusted me to assist the Tire Industry Association in this new role,” Trum said. “Having participated as an active member of the board for several years now, I’m regularly inspired by the great work being performed by the staff and teammates of the TIA. I look forward to contributing towards and investing in the continued advocacy and training efforts by TIA in the exciting years to come.”
Wolfe, who Trum replaces, became a TIA director in 2007, filling a vacated board seat. He was then re-elected to successive three-year terms in 2009 and 2012 and became treasurer and a member of the group's executive committee in 2014. During his time on TIA's board, Wolfe chaired the association's strategic planning committee in 2017 and 2018 and TIA's Hall of Fame Committee in 2022 and 2023.
TIA Chief Operating Officer Sandra Martinez, who has worked closely with Wolfe for the past nine years, called him a tremendous asset to the association.
“He helped guide TIA through some challenging times and worked to build a strong foundation for the association. I greatly admire and respect Mike’s calm and pragmatic approach and his unwavering commitment to the advancement of the association and our industry.”
TIA CEO Richard “Dick” Gust also hailed Wolfe’s contributions and the election of Devens and Trum to the executive committee.
“The association is blessed to have such talented and dedicated individuals on the board,” he said. “As the tire and automotive world evolves, we rely on the guidance of our board in meeting new challenges. We look forward to Russ’s and TJ’s leadership efforts and thank those of Mike Wolfe, who has been a strong advocate."
